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Tent City's last day

Steve Brigham packed up and left Lakewood's Tent City as ordered on July 3, 20143. Brigham, who helped establish the camp took all the valuble items he could fit in his bus and other vehicle. STAFF VIDEO BY PETER ACKERMAN

By Kevin Pentón@kevinpentonAPP
12:12 p.m. EDT July 4, 2014

The Rev. Steve Brigham loads up his converted school bus, in which he will still have to leave himself enough space to sleep. Brigham had to be out of Tent City in Lakewood by end of day Thursday.
(Photo:
Peter Ackerman/staff photographer
)

On move-out day at Tent City on Thursday, minister Steve Brigham packed his belongings into a school bus and onto the back of a sawed-off Winnebago.

The unconventional vehicles were perhaps one last example of a years-long attempt by Brigham and others at the Lakewood camp to try to upend the traditional notions of what it means to be homeless in New Jersey.

Rather than pack people onto rows of cots in a shelter or inside motel rooms, Brigham wanted to create a self-sustaining community of tents, domes and tepees among the pine trees of Lakewood.

But township officials — alarmed as the camp's population mushroomed to more than 100 people and sporadic fires and deaths occurred — took Brigham to court.

Reverand Steve Brigham loads up with worth keeping into his converted school bus in which he will still have to leave himself enough space to sleep. Brigham had to be out of the Tent City site in Lakewood NJ by end of day July 3, 2013. Photo by Peter Ackerman (Photo: Gannett)

Reverand Steve Brigham loads up with worth keeping into his converted school bus in which he will still have to leave himself enough space to sleep. Brigham had to be out of the Tent City site in Lakewood NJ by end of day July 3, 2013. Photo by Peter Ackerman (Photo: Gannett)

MInister Steve playfully poses with a Normal Rockwell book left laying around the camp that bore a resemblance to him. Minister Steve Brigham packs up Lakewood's Tent City with the help of volunteers and moves out on July 3, 2013 as ordered. Peter Ackerman / Staff Photographer (Photo: Gannett)

Reverand Steve Brigham talks on the phone making arrangements on his final day at the Lakewood Tent City site. He spent the day loading up what he could that was worth keeping. Brigham had to be out of the Tent City site in Lakewood NJ by end of day July 3, 2013. Photo by Peter Ackerman (Photo: Gannett)

Reverand Steve gets help loading up some the the stoves with saving as he packs up on his last day at Lakewood Tent City. Reverand Steve Brigham loads up with worth keeping into his converted school bus in which he will still have to leave himself enough space to sleep. Brigham had to be out of the Tent City site in Lakewood NJ by end of day July 3, 2013. Photo by Peter Ackerman (Photo: Gannett)

A volunteer helps Minister Steve load his clothes into the back of his bus as he packs away what he can. Minister Steve Brigham packs up Lakewood's Tent City with the help of volunteers and moves out on July 3, 2013 as ordered. Peter Ackerman / Staff Photographer (Photo: Gannett)

John Kirch had a place for the night once Tent City shut down on Thursday night, but his future plans are still up in the air. Minister Steve Brigham packs up Lakewood's Tent City with the help of volunteers and moves out on July 3, 2013 as ordered. Peter Ackerman / Staff Photographer (Photo: Gannett)

Minister Steve takes a quick break to eat a lunch as he packs up on the last day of Tent City. Minister Steve Brigham packs up Lakewood's Tent City with the help of volunteers and moves out on July 3, 2013 as ordered. Peter Ackerman / Staff Photographer (Photo: Gannett)

Signs that humg on the trees in Lakewood's Tent City sit next to a car to be taken home as momentoes. Minister Steve Brigham packs up Lakewood's Tent City with the help of volunteers and moves out on July 3, 2013 as ordered. Peter Ackerman / Staff Photographer (Photo: Gannett)

John Kirch had a place for the night once Tent City shut down on Thursday night, but his future plans are still up in the air. Minister Steve Brigham packs up Lakewood's Tent City with the help of volunteers and moves out on July 3, 2013 as ordered. Peter Ackerman / Staff Photographer (Photo: Gannett)

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The result of the longstanding court battle won 125 people who slept for three consecutive nights at Tent City in May 2013 the right to a year's worth of housing, paid for primarily by Lakewood taxpayers.

The condition of the deal was that Tent City — located on township-owned land — had to shut down once the last person was housed.

Once that occurred last Thursday, Brigham had one more week to gather his belongings and leave by sundown on Thursday.

"This is not exactly how I would have envisioned it ending," said Brigham, drenched in sweat on Thursday. "I would have liked to at least have erected a permanent shelter."

By the time the final bill is in, Lakewood expects to spend about $600,000 on clearing out Tent City, Deputy Mayor Albert Akerman said. "I'm so relieved that it's over," Akerman said. "I'm happy that so many people have gotten a second chance at life."

Michael McNeil, who heads the agency charged with finding housing for those who were counted in the May 2013 census, said he hopes Tent City's former residents will have a better chance at receiving the mental health, substance abuse or job training services they need now that they are living in apartments instead of tents.

While McNeil does not think Tent City was the best way to deal with homelessness in Ocean County, he said Brigham did the best that he could to directly help people with immense personal needs.

"All the surrounding communities were sending people to Steve, just dumping them off," said McNeil of Solutions To End Poverty Soon, the nonprofit Lakewood hired to place the Tent City residents into apartments. "I'm hoping everyone involved has learned something from this experience."

Jeffrey Wild, an attorney who represented the camp for free for several years, said he hopes Ocean County's nonprofits that service the homeless can band together to pool resources so an emergency shelter can be built.

While Wild said he believes the organizations should approach the problem of homelessness with a spirit of cooperation with all levels of government, not necessarily with antagonism, he commends Brigham for his attempt to create an alternative concept in Lakewood.

By now, most of the tents that gave Tent City its name are gone. On Thursday, Brigham and a handful of volunteers labored amongst what was left to clear out what they could by sundown, as per their agreement with Lakewood.

Previously, Brigham and a homeless man, Sam Dell, sawed off the back of a Winnebago so it could serve as a makeshift flatbed truck. Once the back was clear, volunteers loaded appliances onto the vehicle's rear.

Brigham also stuffed the school bus, which will serve as his temporary home in the coming days, with wood stoves, propane tanks, steel rods, tools, wires and even a clothing rack loaded with suits and overcoats.

"My wardrobe," said Brigham.

Nearby, a weather-beaten copy of Norman Rockwell's "Portrait of America" lay on a wooden stoop amongst other strewn objects. Someone remarked that the man on the cover resembled Brigham.

Loading generators and other heavy equipment into the vehicles proved to be a tremendous effort in the July heat, so volunteers with drenched brows took occasional breaks by sitting on folding chairs, passing around a McDonald's bag of hamburgers.

As sundown approached, a couple of the vehicles began to rumble through the mud towards Tent City's exit. Left behind, for the moment, was the wooden pulpit that Brigham used during his Sunday sermons at the camp.